Coastline College recently became part of OCTA’s Community College Pass Program, a shared-cost program that will introduce the college’s more than 10,000 enrolled students to the convenience and affordability of public transit.
Students can now enjoy a free, comfortable ride to school, work or wherever they want to travel while avoiding parking costs and hassles and doing their part to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
“We’re happy to welcome Coastline on board with OCTA to help more students achieve their goals through easier access to higher education,” said OCTA Chairman Mark A. Murphy, also the Mayor of Orange.
The program began in 2017 and has helped increase ridership, introduced new riders to public transit and remove barriers to higher education for students, some who say they wouldn’t be able to attend college without it.
Based on the student pass program’s initial success, beginning with the pilot project at Santa Ana College and the School of Continuing Education, OCTA looked for opportunities to expand the program to other Orange County campuses, including Santiago Canyon College in Orange, and then to Golden West College in Huntington Beach, Fullerton College, Saddleback College in Mission Viejo, Cypress College and Irvine Valley College. OCTA is working with Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa next.
In the last six months, OCTA has recorded more than 250,000 boardings through its college pass and university pass programs.
Grant funding for the Community College Pass is provided by the California Climate Investments program, a statewide initiative that puts billions of Cap-and-Trade dollars to work reducing greenhouse gas emissions, strengthening the economy, and improving public health and the environment – particularly in disadvantaged communities.
Although bus ridership fell sharply during the COVID-19 pandemic, OC Bus continues to provide a high level of service and ridership has begun to increase again, helping riders reach essential jobs, health appointments and other important destinations.
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